Kenner man booked with rape of 5-year-old girl

A Kenner man was booked with aggravated rape for an attack that left a 5-year-old girl hospitalized, Kenner police said.

Jose Licona

Jose M. Licona, 33, 2920 Iowa Ave., was arrested Monday, the same day the girl was treated at Children's Hospital in New Orleans for injuries so severe to her vagina and anus that they required surgery, a police report said.

The girl told her mother she was bleeding, so the mother took her to East Jefferson General Hospital, said Sgt. Brian McGregor, Police Department spokesman. From there, the child was transferred to Children's Hospital, McGregor said.

The treating physician there interviewed the girl, who provided a "clear and detailed history of sexual abuse," the police report said. The doctor's report noted that "the physical findings were definitive for penetrating trauma" and "indicative of sexual abuse," the police report said.

The girl told the doctor and, later, detective Charlotte Synigal that Licona had sex with her at his house on Sunday, the report said. The girl, who knows Licona, said she told him he was hurting her but that he ordered her to "be quiet and keep still," the report said.

McGregor said Licona's current charges are based on the doctor's report, but more criminal charges could follow. The girl said Licona had committed the same type of acts upon her before while her mother was at work.

On Tuesday, the girl remained in the hospital, and Licona remained in jail, McGregor said. His bond had not been set.